Safety-check book



(No Model.) A v LBVBNTRITT.

SAFETY CHECK BOOK. A No. 576,592'. Patented Peb. 9,1897.

"F i l THE Nonms PETERS co, wofouwo., wAsHmG'mu. n c

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MARION LEVENTRITT, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

SAFETY-CH ECK BOOK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 576,592, datedFebruary 9, 1897.

Application filed July 28, 1896. Serial No. 600,816. (No model.)

,T0 all whom t may concern.: Be it known that I, MARION LEVENTRITT, a

vcitizen of the United States, Aresiding in the city and county of SanFrancisco and State of California, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Safety-Check Books, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements made in safety-check books; andthe object of the same is to provide for the use of banks and forcommercial purposes generally a book containing a series of blankchecks, drafts, or the like, any one of which when filled out and issuedfor a given sum cannot by any means be altered or raised to anyconsiderable sum in excess of the original or true value of theinstrument without the fraud being detected and payment refused, and thewhole series being adapted for the issuing of checks or drafts for anysums or amounts from the smallest tothe largest in the general businesstransactions of the bank or the merchant without involving complicatedand tedious manipulations or operations and without departing from thegeneral form of such cornmercial paper.

To this end my invention consists in a checkbook containing blank checksarranged in pages, (three are shown in the drawings hereto attached,although there may be more or less, as will be understood,) the firstblank having a body portion of a xed or standard limit or figure and atits stub end integral unperforated coupons between which the check maybe torn off soas to permit as many of the coupons to remain attached tothe body portion as it is desired to increase or extend by said couponsthe limit denoted by said body portion, the next blank having a bodyportion of slightly greater fixed or standard length, denoting a sumgreater than the first check with all its coupons. Unperforated couponsare integrally attached to this second check-blank in the same manner asto the first blank above mentioned,which coupons may be permitted toremain connected with the blank in number as it is desired to increasethis greater limit of value expressed by the body portion. A thirdblank, in like manner increasing in length over the second blank and itsbody limit increased by its coupons, forms the third blank of theseries, and so on. The invention therefore includes a blank for checks,drafts, and other` like instruments combining in its structure the twoelements of safety-a standard length of body portion and coupons of auniform width integral with or capable of remaining attached to saidbody portion. Both the body portion and the coupons are printed orotherwise inscribed about as shown in the drawings.

The nature of my said invention and the manner in which the same isadapted for commercial use will be fully understood from the followingdescription, taken in connection with the drawings hereto attached, inwhich- Figure lis a perspective View of my improved check-book open.Fig. 2 is a plan view of one of the firstA set of checks filled out andtorn from the stub of the book in such manner that its body and couponsdesignate the sum written thereon. Fig. 3 is a similar view of one ofthe second set of checks wherein the body portion and coupons attachedthereto indicate a sum slightly greater than that written on the face ofthe check.

In the said drawings the letterA designates the cover portion or bindingof the checkbook, within which are bound a number of sheets or pages,each originally printed about as seen in Fig. l.

In the present illustration I have shown each sheet as having a stub Snext the binding of the cover and beyond that a series of checks, threein number, forming a set of three blanks throughout the book. The backsof these checks may be left blank for the reception of the indorserssignature, ormay be ornamented or printed upon at will. The paper ofwhich the Whole is made may be that commonly employed for checks anddrafts.

The letter B designates the body portion of the first blank check of theiirst set, which from its right or outer end to the divisional line ofprinting which marks its separation from its first coupon C may measure,for example, six and one-half inches. This body portion of such astandard length (or any other agreed upon) Will denote a limit of onethou- IOO sand dollars, and each coupon permitted to remain attachedthereto will add one thousand dollars to such standard limit of value.All the coupons are of the same width, and are made preferablyone-quarter of an inch wide, the innermost or left-hand one beingattached to the stub S.

The letter B designates the body portion of the second blank of the set,which is increased in length over the first blank B by one-half an inch,so that the standard length of these blanks B would then be seveninches, although the difference in length between the body portion ofthis check and that in Fig. 2 need not be limited to one-half an inch,and the increase in length may be more or less than a half-inch, aspreferred. rlhe coupons C' at the left end of this check should be ofthe same width as thoselettered C. The body portion B here denotes alimit of ten thousand dollars, and its coupons C add each one thousanddollars to that sum, as here shown, although they might add more orless, and the sum thus added need not be the same as added to the checkB by the coupons C.

In like manner the body portion B2 of the third check is increased inlength over B by one-half an inch and its coupons C2 are onefourth inchwide, although this, too, is a matter of choice. There may be additionalcheck-blanks in the set, if desired, but the check B2 here denotes byits length a limit of twenty thousand dollars and each coupon adds onethousand dollars to that limit.

Vhatever the limits set upon the various body portions and all thecoupons, such sums are plainly printed or inscribed on the facesthereof, so as to prevent errors on the part of the person drawing acheck; but whatever values such printing indicates they are not aloneconsidered by the payer of the check in determining its value, for whenpresented for payment he lays it upon a scale or measure to determineits limit before paying, and if the figures written on the check are notgreater than the limit thus indicated by the length of the body portionand all its coupons he honors it at sight.

The use of the safety-checks as above described would be as follows: Ifit were desired to draw a check for one thousand dollars or any sumbelow that figure, the body portion Bis used as usual and is torn off soas to leave all the coupons C remaining attached to the stub. The payerlays this body portion on his scale, which indicates at a glance that abody portion of six and one-half inches is good for one thousanddollars, and hence he honors the' check for that sum or anything below.To draw a check for iive thousand dollars, this body B is used for thefirst one thousand dollars and four coupons C are torn oif with it forthe remaining four thousand dollars and the check then has theappearance of that seen in Fig. 2. Again the payer uses his scale, withthe same result as to the body portion, and the four coupons indicatefour thousand dollars additional. In Fig. 3 is shown a check drawn foran odd amountthat is, a sum which is not exactly indicated by any checkwith any certain number of coupons-here twelve thousand five hundreddollars. Here the drawer of the check selects that blank from the setwhose body portion denotes the largest possible limit within the sum tobe paid and fills up and signs such blank and then tears it off betweenthose two coupons which will leave the whole to designate the smallestpossible amount above the real value of the check. In this case the bodyportion designates ten thousand dollars and each coupon one thousanddollars additional, and hence the check, as seen in Fig. 3, woulddesignate a limit of thirteen thousand dollars, which is only fivehundred dollars above the figure written by the drawer of the check, andabove which sum of thirteen thousand dollars it would be impossible forthe instrument to be fraudulently raised. Vhen the check or draft ispresented, the payer uses the scale as above described and with theabove result.

Having thus described my invention, what Iclaim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A check-book containing a set of blank checks, drafts, or similarinstruments, one blank being composed of a body portion of a standardlength denoting by its linear measurement a standard limit of moneyvalue and on the stub end of such body portion and integral therewith aset of unperfoiated coupons of a standard and uniform width each ofwhich is adapted to raise the limit of money value of the blank asexpressed by the length of said body portion a regular amount bytheaddition of its width thereof to such body portion when left attached toand issued with the blank; and additional blanks each having a bodyportion of standard length which exceeds the standard length of thefirst blank and unperforated coupons on the stub end thereof integraltherewith of standard and uniform widths and each of which beingattached to and issued integrally with the blank raises by a fixedamount the limit of money value as expressed by the length of the bodyportion of the said blank by increasing the length thereof by a regularamount, as set forth.

2. The herein-described check-book comprising a cover and blanks boundtherein connected to the cover by a stub and beyond said stub-blankchecks each consisting of integral unperforatcd coupons of a standardand uniform width attached next to the stub and an integralVunperforated body portion next to the coupons, whereby the linearmeasurement of the said body portion alone when detached from and issuedwithout the coupons IOO IIO

fixes the limit of money Value of the Cheek regular amount thereof, asand for the purand each coupon left on and issued with the pose setforth. 1o check raises such limit of money Value by a In testimony thatI claim the foregoing I regular amount and fixes such limit by inhavehereunto set my hand and seal.

5 creasing the length of the body portion a fixed MARION LEVENTRITT. [Ls] and certain amount; the body portions in a Witnesses: set of saidblanks being severally of greater EDWARD E. OSBORN,

linear measurement one over the other by a J AMES L. KING.

